A Study In Coincidence
by MaddHatta21
Summary: A run of the mill murder investigation leads to a series of unexpected meetings with a strange woman. There is a sudden string of murders in the area, all connected to the same person. There is no such thing as coincidence.
1. Dead in the Water

A Study In Coincidence

By MadHatta21

It started, as most things involving Sherlock Holmes do, with a murder.

The body of Eve Mitchell was discovered late on Monday afternoon. Upon entering the apartment Sherlock had immediately declared it a murder.

"Murder!" Anderson had declared, "How is it a murder?! She's obviously drowned, fell asleep in the bath tub."

"Anderson! What did I tell you about talking? You've lowered the IQ of the entire building."

"What makes you think it was a murder?" John asked.

Sherlock straightened up from his examination of the body, "Well it is obvious isn't it?"

"Not to me it isn't," John put in.

Sherlock sighed, "Her hands are clenched, an obvious sign of a struggle, and in her right hand there are strands of brunette hair. The gash on her forehead is hidden by her bangs, but obviously a sign of blunt force trauma to the head. There is a small leaf caught in her hair, so she obviously wasn't killed here, it is more likely that she drowned in a nearby lake or pond. The nearest body of water is Potter's pond, so that is most likely where the murder took place."

Sherlock motioned to the bedroom, "She also has a troubled marriage, the ring on her finger is dirty, but the jewelry on her vanity is regularly cleaned."

He pointed to the bottle of pills lying spilled on the floor next to the sink, "She was taking anti-depressants, so her husband was most likely aware of the affair. Also her cell phone is missing."

"This, gentlemen, was a crime of passion," Sherlock adjusted his scarf, "How dull."


	2. In Passing

"Two hazelnut lattes and a bagel, will that be all miss?" The cashier asked.

Pale pink lips spread into an easy smile, as Anita Blake took her coffee, "Yes, that will be all."

"That comes to six pounds even."

Anita paid the cashier, "Thank you."

She stepped out of the cafe and onto the street, just in time to have two men barrel passed her, the first one slamming into her and unintentionally knocking the lattes out of her arms.

Anita let out a startled yelp.

One of the men shouted out and apology as they vanished into the crowd.

* * *

Sherlock had just interviewed Naomi Martinez, wife of Dan Martinez the ex husband of Eve Mitchell and also the man with whom she was last spotted.

Naomi had mentioned that she had seen Dan on the morning of the murder, but that he had not returned that night. Of course, Sherlock deduced that this was a regular occurrence, due to Naomi's lack of concern for her husband.

Following this interview Sherlock and John had set out for Potter's Pond, as it was incredibly likely that they would find Dan there.

The man had bolted the instant Sherlock had called out to him.

This, of course, led to a chase.

Dan fled away from the pond, located in a city park, and straight down the street, Sherlock hot on his heels.

The consulting detective and his companion stuck to Dan's trail, zig-zagging in and out of the throngs of people to keep up.

It was only after slamming into a woman, outside of a cafe, that Sherlock was knocked off course.

In that instant he lost sight of his suspect.

John called out an apology as they ran, Sherlock hoping to get an idea as to where Dan had escaped to.

The man appeared to have vanished into thin air, but Sherlock deduced it was more likely that Dan had simply stopped running, choosing instead to blend in with the bustling crowd.

There was no sign of him.

* * *

"The _nerve_ of some people," Anita huffed, using the napkin from her bagel to clean off the coffee on her coat.

She had just been on her way to visit her cousin Naomi.

The two of them had always been rather close and Anita had mad a point to visit her cousin every week, often bringing coffee from their favorite cafe.

Naomi would be disappointed now that there were no lattes to be had, and Anita had only brought enough money with her for the coffee and bagel.

With a heavy sigh, she set off for Naomi's house.

* * *

Anita knocked on the door, and Naomi flung it open almost immediately, her wide eyes scanning the front yard.

"Come in, quickly!"

Anita was surprised by the urgency in her cousin's voice, but entered the house.

Naomi quickly shut the door behind her, and grasped Anita's upper arm.

"Have you seen Dan?" Naomi asked.

Anita shook her head, "Not since Thursday, why? Is there something wrong?"

Naomi sighed, "I think he might be in some sort of trouble."

Anita frowned, "Trouble? What sort of trouble?"

"He went out with Eve last night, and he didn't come back this morning."

"That's normal for him though, isn't it?" Anita asked with quite a bit of distaste in her voice.

"Yes," Naomi admitted, "but Eve was found dead this morning in her apartment."

Silence fell between the two of them, before Anita took a deep breath.

"Do you think he did it?"

"I don't know."


End file.
